Earning a second seed heading into their regional game, the Garfield Bulldogs would face off against Stanwood High School who lost to Arlington last week and looked to end Garfield’s 18-game winning streak.
The Bulldogs’ momentum is high considering they have an 18-0 overall record, and have captured this season’s Metro League and District 2 championship trophies. With a loaded roster and significant coaching, Garfield looked to extend their win streak to 19 before heading to the Tacoma Dome for the state tournament.
Garfield’s defense normally results in easy points and big leads early, although the Bulldogs scored quickly Stanwood managed to keep their deficit under five points after the first quarter because of their ability to make open three-point shots.
Despite scoring from Katie Fiso, Imbie Jones, Naveah Talbert, and Jayda Lewis, the Bulldogs held a 16-11 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Bulldogs took complete control of the game as they went on a 10-0 run.
Lewis made an up and under layup and then made a three-pointer on the next possession. Malia Samuels had a steal that led to a layup plus a foul, and Fiso’s putback off a missed shot capped off their run forcing Stanwood to call a timeout. Following the timeout, Garfield would score five more points as they took a 36-20 lead going into halftime.
Garfield’s momentum from the second quarter carried over to the second half, as the Bulldogs’ defense completely disrupted Stanwood’s ability to run their offensive sets. Stanwood was barely able to get the ball across half court, and the consistent pressure by Garfield provided an opportunity for the Bulldogs to score quickly.
With their defense leading the charge, Garfield allowed Stanwood to score just 10 points in the third quarter, while their lead increased from 16 to 25 going into the fourth quarter.
Garfield’s starting five combined for 59 of the Bulldogs’ 67 total points. Lewis led all scorers with 16 points, Fiso had 14, Samuels poured in 11, Talbert and Jones each had 9 points for the Bulldogs. Winning 67-44, the Bulldogs have held their last five opponents to under 50 points.
Garfield (19-0) will now play the winner of Lakeside and Lincoln(Tacoma) on Thursday, Stanwood will face off against Auburn on Wednesday.
Pictoral Highlights of Stanwood High School v Garfield High School
